UnitedHealth to Give Customers $1.5 Billion of Discounts
May 07 2020 - 5:29AM
Dow Jones News
By Anna Wilde Mathews
UnitedHealth Group Inc. will offer customers about $1.5 billion
of discounts and other help, including credits toward premiums and
suspension of out-of-pocket charges for some doctor visits, amid
the coronavirus pandemic.
The parent of the biggest U.S. health insurer said that in June,
it would offer premium credits ranging from 5% to 20% to employers
and individuals enrolled in its fully-insured plans, with larger
amounts for those in areas harder-hit by the new coronavirus. A
small portion of the payments represents an advance against rebates
that will likely be required under the Affordable Care Act, the
company said.
UnitedHealth said it would also waive cost sharing, such as
copayments, for specialist and primary-care doctor visits by people
enrolled in its Medicare Advantage plans, through at least the end
of September.
"Taken together, these actions will help people get and pay for
health care," said David Wichmann, chief executive of
UnitedHealth.
Insurers have said they are seeing members drop out of
employer-provided coverage, and they are expecting gains in
Medicaid enrollment, as layoffs take hold across the U.S. economy.
Many employers are also struggling to keep paying for coverage for
workers as revenue drops.
Analysts are expecting huge savings--and rich profits--for
insurers in the second quarter due to the sharp drop-off in claims
for health-care services, as hospitals have canceled most elective
procedures and consumers have steered clear of emergency rooms and
doctors' offices. Analysts have suggested that the financial
results could draw unfavorable scrutiny to the health-insurance
industry at a time when most of the U.S. economy is under huge
duress.
Mr. Wichmann said the new UnitedHealth payments represent "an
initial effort to get a portion of what we refer to as the
imbalance into the hands of either the group or the individual,
whoever paid us."
CVS Health Corp. said Wednesday that its Aetna unit had seen a
30% drop in the use of health-care services in April compared with
the previous year. The company said inpatient hospital use was down
more than 30%, outpatient care fell by 25% and physician services
were down nearly 35%.
Humana Inc. announced Tuesday it would waive cost-sharing on
primary care, behavioral health and telehealth visits by its
Medicare members for the rest of the year. The insurer said the
move was part of its effort to disburse gains that come as the
result of the downturn in most health-care services.
UnitedHealth also said it would provide "premium price stability
and support" in its Medicare supplement policies, and make some
moves targeted to the Medicaid population, including expanding
programs that provide food and baby formula.
Write to Anna Wilde Mathews at anna.mathews@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 07, 2020 05:14 ET (09:14 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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